This is a platform to comment on local, state and national politics and political news. A special area of interest is the role of corporate media in politics as we move closer and closer to one huge corporation owning all of the media outlets in the country and stifling all independent and critical voices. It will also focus on the absurd 30-plus year Nixonesque political strategy of the “liberal media” lie.
This blog is on temporary hiatus because of my job and thin-skinned Republicans.

Feb 16, 2011

Wisconsin workers react to having their rights stolen

Americans don’t like having their rights stolen, and public employees in Wisconsin are reacting to having their rights stolen by taking to the streets in masse in Madison.

Extremist Republican Gov. Scott Walker is trying to strip state workers of their collective bargaining rights, and more than 10,000 Wisconsin residents who love freedom marched on the state Capitol on Tuesday.

According to published reports, the protests are unprecedented in recent Wisconsin history, and the protests spread to the Milwaukee area, where hundreds of workers massed outside Walker's suburban home.

The city's schools are closing as teachers take sick days to join the protests and buses packed with public employees roll into the city. Students at the University of Wisconsin walked out of classes to protest the union-busting tactics.

Current and past members of the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers, a publicly-owned team, issued a statement in solidarity with Wisconsin workers seeking to retain their collective bargaining rights, as did the NFL Players Association.

“The NFL Players Association will always support efforts protecting a worker’s right to join a union and collectively bargain,” the association said. “Today, the NFLPA stands in solidarity with its organized labor brothers and sisters in Wisconsin.”

Walker’s effort is not about balancing the state budget because unions are more than willing to make concessions to help balance the budget like they have in local municipalities, it’s about busting the union.

This union-busting attempt is not unique to Wisconsin. Its part of a nationwide effort by Republicans to bust public sector unions and take away rights won with sweat and blood. With the Citizens United decision that has pumped millions of unregulated corporate and foreign cash into Republican coffers, killing unions will erase Democratic support.

36 comments:

These are employees who are paid with money from state taxpayers. Yet they walk off their jobs and get paid for protesting. And you think that's just fine.

Thank goodness for them, the private sector was a work, earning the money that is taxed to provide the salaries and benefits that allow these work-skippers to fully-paid days off.

Forty percent of Madison teachers called in sick, forcing the schools to close. That's dedication for you. Almost half the teachers lied by saying they were sick, so the entire system got a taxpayer-funded day off, so that these slackers could demand that taxpayers spend even more of their money funding unreasonable benefits.

They should be fired. They lied. But their union will protect them because that's what unions do...protect slackers.

Tens of thousands of public employees took the day off...makes me think that Wisconsin hires way too many public employees.

So? What does it matter who pays them? Are you saying because they are public employees they don’t get basic rights? Second, not all of them are public employees, like the NFL and students; third, almost every job – at least for now – gets paid days off and fourth, who says they are getting paid?

You don’t believe public employees pay taxes?

Good for Madison teachers. They are teaching children a valuable lesson; they you stand up for your rights and you do not let government intimidate you, even if he threatens to call out the military.

If you “have nothing against their rights” then why are you not outraged that they are being taken away?

Who said they had to be sick to take a day off? No one but you, apparently, call them sick days. It’s called personal time, and I can’t think of nothing more important than taking a day off to fight for your rights against a tyrant.

More word games. The only job I have been at where you had to have a reason to take a day off was the military. Good for Madison teachers.

“These people are so committed to their principles that they will only protest if someone else is picking up the tab?” That is a ridiculous claim. Plus, it was not just state workers protesting. No, the message that public workers sent in Wisconsin is that they will stand up to tyranny.

No it was not just state workers. It was also public school teachers. Madison schools today were closed for the second straight day because teachers skipped out on their obligations. Teachers still got paid, but students got short-changed.

Well, you apparently worked for state government so maybe it is possible that you took time off without permission. I won't argue with you.

How many places did you work where 40 percent of the workforce up and decided not to go to work...and still got paid for it?

Here's the deal, you little dweeb. From what I know, I don't think I like what Walker is doing in Wisconsin. I don't believe for a second that the unions were willing to give the concessions that were needed, but I don't favor getting rid of collective bargaining rights merely because you have the votes to do it.

I also don't like employees skipping out of work. They are paid to do a job. They should do it...or at least give up the pay. They get benefits better than the private sector. The private sector works to earn the money to pay the taxes to pay for those generous benefits. Then the public employees take the day off and get paid, again with the money earned by the private sector...most of whom didn't get the last two days off.

The Wisconsin public school teachers who called in sick to attend the rally are cheaters. It's that simple. Almost as simple as you.

You’re right; when I said state workers I should be more clear and say public employees.

Good for the teachers at Madison. I don’t agree students got “short-changed.” I have never taken time off without permission. “Little dweeb?” Wow, big words from a guy who hides behind an anonymous name. Well, who cares what you believe, but unions all over the country have given concessions. Public employees are more educated than most and care for the communities they live in, so I’m sure they will make concessions. Nice to hear you support collective bargaining rights, but like I said before, this is about union busting, not balancing the budget.

I don’t see “employees skipping out of work.” They may get benefits better than the private sector, but as studies show here in Michigan, they make less money than those in the private sector. The Wisconsin public school teachers who called in sick to attend the rally have every right to do so.

You have no credibility and it because of statements like this: "The Wisconsin public school teachers who called in sick to attend the rally have every right to do so."

No they don't. They lied when they called in sick. They have no right to do that. I just watched a Wisconsin teacher on CNN talk about how she "agonized" about calling in sick because she knew it was wrong, but she wanted to, in her words, stand up to the bully.

If the teachers have the "right," then why call in sick? Why not call and and say, "I'm not coming in to work today because I'm going to protest at the Capitol." If they have that right, why hide what they are doing?

On top of that, what are you teaching the kids? To lie to get what you want?

Commie Guru, do you really know what is trying to be taken away? Walker, remember, is not removing unions' fundamental power to bargain for wages. He is demanding that state workers put 5.8% of their wages toward retirement and that they cover 12.6% of their health care premiums, which would still have them paying more than $100 less a month than the average schmoe. He is also proposing that elected officials determine the shape of employee benefits without having to bargain them, and this as much as the added cost has unions crying "unfair."

Now, the citizens of the state of Wisconsin knew this was going to happen if they voted for Gov Walker. Across the country middle America is voting Republican because the people are getting sick of paying people to do jobs that also make twice as much than the average taxpayer and the unions do not want to give in to anything.

As shown to Commie guru in a video he didnt respond to, NJ another predominantly Blue state like Michigan and Wisconsin are voting Republican because the unions are running out of control and costing everyone more money that the people dont have. NJ teachers were getting fired left and right because their union wouldnt concede anything, its going to happen in Wisconsin and its going to happen in Michigan.

So Commie Guru, if you truly want to stand up for the middle class in this instance, you should be anti unions in this case and support the state wanting some concessions from the union. If not, teachers will be fired, people will lose houses and the like. Also in order to cover obligations to the unions, they may have to make other cuts that her more people or just raise taxes which hurts everyone.

So practice what you preach and go after unions that do not want to compromise.

I'm going to put a quote out that the Commie Guru stated nearly a year ago. "the people spoke loud and clear in the most important poll"

The people also spoke in a loud and clear voice in the most important poll in this situation.

What we have is teachers calling in sick. They aren't home putting vicks vapor rub on. They aren't home eating chicken soup. They are standing out in front of the Capitol. In many cases, they took students with them. Students, when asked why they are there are saying that they don't know. Or in one kids case he said they were protesting "something".

The Democrats in the Wisconsin Senate have disappeared. When the Wisconsin Democrat Party Communications director was asked if he knew where they were, he said no.

I think that's a fitting answer because while the Democrats in DC were ramming through the takeover of health care and gave us Obamacare, they claimed that the Republicans were the party of no for "daring" to not go along with the Obamacare takeover. Apparently, the 14 Democrat Senators have become the party of No in Wisconsin.

The public workers in Wisconsin were asked to pay for 12% of their health care. Notice, it's THEIR health care. They ought to be paying for THEIR health care. The state can't afford to.

If this doesn't go through and the Democrats win this debate, so be it. But how many of those truant teachers standing outside the Capitol building today will not have a job when they must be laid off to pay the bills, will be happy to sacrifice their jobs AND their health care just so that their former colleagues can still have a job and the benefits?

Imagine if teachers were held to the same standards as the students. If a student skips school, it's detention or a trip to the truancy judge. If a teacher skips school, they call it a "sick day".

Also Commie Guru, why is it that you dont address my point of you should be standing up for the middle class here and not the unions. Please elaborate and change my mind, because this seems pretty dang clear. Give a little or everyone could lose a lot.

Yes, collective bargining rights and the right to band together for better pay and benefits and working conditions. Wrong, this is about busting unions, not balancing the budget. No one is getting “twice as much than the average taxpayer.”

I am standing up for the middle class, and that’s why I’m standing up for who and what created the middle class. It’s not a coincidence that as union membership falls off, the gap between the rich and the average worker is growing larger; to the point we are becoming a banana republic. The state doesn’t want “some concessions from the union,” they want to kill them.

Like I said, there is no such thing as a Socialist Democrat. There is, however, apparently a Democratic Socialists Party of America, and the two have nothing to do with each other.

"Dan Nerad, superintendent of public schools in Madison, said that after more than 40 percent of teachers called in sick the decision was made to cancel classes because administrators were concerned about a safe and secure school environment.

He said Madison public school teachers who are taking a sick day will be asked to show proof of a medical reason. Those who don't could be docked pay."

If these protests go on long enough, maybe these teachers calling in "sick" will be docked more than 12% of their pay and figure out they'd have been better off paying for their own health care.

Thanks Commie Guru, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this blog is now dumber for having read it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

So again I ask you, they do not want any concessions, should they just get fired? If a state is in the red, what should they do add more debt? They cant just print more money like someone else we know can.

New Jersey dealt with it, Michigan will shortly and Wisconsin currently is. To quote someone who quoted you, "the people spoke loud and clear in the most important poll".

So it looks as if you are for the unions here instead of the middle class of Wisconsin. The teachers avg pay is more than the avg pay of the citizens of Wisconsin. So in order to help the unionized people, the govt will either have to cut other items and "hurt" more people or raise taxes during a difficult economic time. So again, you stand with the unions and not the middle class of Wisconsin? The two are not the same, as most of Wisconsin is middle class and pays the taxes of the teachers that are going APE SHIZZ here and make more on average, of which I am glad they are getting docked pay.

The issue in Wisconsin is what people of the state can afford to pay, not what the unions want. It's about what the kids need as students, not what the unions want.

and

Public Sector Unions are monopolies organizing against the Taxpayers who pay their salariesThis isn't about the right to organize or join a union. It's that there's no money!

So again, you are for the union which is currently worse for the state and its middle class workers whom you claim to champion for. You are two faced hypocrite union Dem mouthpiece. You out and out lie on here and are caught it and you really have no defense anymore. Read all your statements above, you would rather reward a small group of people over the entire state. You keep saying Republicans want to make the rich richer? You want union to make the rich union workers bosses organizers etc richer.

I'm still trying to figure out what rights anyone is being denied. The right to work? There isn't such a thing in the Constitution. Besides, the Commie Guru is against Right to Work. So that can't be it.

The Senate Democrats have left the state. Apparently, they are on the run from Justice (because the state police can capture them and bring them back forcing them to work). They are on the run from the people they represent. I actually think this reason justifies them fleeing the state. After all the people of this country turned Democrats out in droves during the last election.

I wonder if the Senate Democrats get sick pay for crossing the state line and avoiding work.

Stop playing dumb. The right to collective bargain. Again, the name is not commie guru; I’m not a pussy like you that makes false personal attacks and hides behind a false name. Good for the Democrats for standing up to tyranny.

Once again, anonymous coward, I am still waiting for you to back up your outrageous lie that we were “nearly shoulder to shoulder once.”

No, I don’t agree; I think they are heroes for standing up for their rights, as do people all over the country. I saw on the news last night thousands of people in and outside the capitol at night. I hope the students are there because it’s better than any field trip because they get to see firsthand working people standing up for their rights against a tyrant. I suspect many are there supporting their teachers.

There is no lying. Any insult from a coward like you I take as a compliment.